Stephanie Marie Seferian's Blog, page 19

Cyberpsychology’s Distorted Mirror

Cyberpsychology is an emerging field that examines the ways in which technology influences human behavior. On today’s show we outline exactly what happens to our purchasing habits when psychology, sociology, and 21st century tech collide.

Here’s a preview:

[1:30] Who you think you are is influenced by others (hello, looking glass self!)

[8:30] It’s human nature to compare and compete: Here’s how and why we internalize social media messaging

[16:00] 3 reasons why shoppers feel better when they pu...

How To Quit

Quitting is aerobics for your brain; it’s also the counterintuitive secret to success. Today I bring you a conversation with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Julia Keller about how to view quitting not as a pejorative but instead as a tool for swapping one destiny for another.

Here’s a preview:

[5:00] How the self-help movement created our culture’s anti-quit bias

[9:00] The similarities between honeybees and Simone Biles, with a nod toward strategic quitting

[17:00] How do you quit a high-stak...

When Minimalism Feels Overwhelming

Organizing mega-influencer Marie Kondo made headlines this week when she admitted to “kind of giv(ing) up” on tidying after having her third child. If, like Marie, you’re feeling overwhelmed and disillusioned with minimalism, today’s episode is here to help.

Here’s a preview:

[6:00] Let’s first reign in our expectations: minimalism won’t solve EVERYthing (but it’ll certainly help)

[9:00] Simple organization strategies over complex ones, with real-life examples

[12:30] The Number One benefit to e...

5 Reasons To Embrace Algae For Omega 3s

Omega 3’s health benefits have long been documented, and omega 3s like EPA and DHA have been found to prevent heart disease and stroke, control eczema and rheumatoid arthritis, and prevent cancer. While many of us meet our omega 3 nutritional needs from fish oil, promising research into algae’s benefits find that algae holds a distinct place as part of the human nutrition solution.

I recently switched from fish oil to Örlö Nutrition’s algae-based omega 3 supplement for my nutritional needs. Here...

Responsible Gifting

When we return an unwanted gift to the manufacturer, they go back on the shelf to be resold, right? Wrong. Most returned gifts (5.8 billion tons, to be exact) end up in landfills each and every year.

The solution lies in responsible gifting because it alleviates the consequences associated with massive finite resource waste; it also saves shoppers time, money, and unnecessary stress.

Today author Tracey Lynch explains how to tweak your gifting philosophy to save our planet while also ensuring ev...

Does Dark Chocolate Contain Heavy Metals?

Thanks to its rich supply of antioxidants, dark chocolate has long been revered for its health benefits. But there’s a dark side to dark chocolate: Recent research found that many of our favorite brands of dark chocolate contain heavy metals. The worst part? These heavy metals – cadmium and lead – are linked to serious health problems including cancer in both children and adults.

Today we round out Chocolate Week with a bang: Dr. Jim Rogers from Consumer Reports discusses what heavy metals in th...

How Ethical Is Your Chocolate?

Ah, chocolate. While those decadent brown rectangles enjoy near-universal consumer love, the reality is far less sweet: Chocolate is one of the most unethical and unsustainable foods we eat.

We can continue to enjoy chocolate by purchasing smarter. Today’s show is Part 1 in a 2-part series about chocolate, and today – just in time for Valentine’s Day! – we unearth the ethical and environmental implications associated with harvesting cacao on the global scale (I’ve also included 7 tips for being ...

Minimalist Screen Time And Slow TV

70% of American parents are concerned their children spend too much time on screens. Are you one of them? 

Here’s a preview:

[3:00] The implications of multiple screen shifts on attention span and executive functioning

[5:00] Exactly how much screen time children *should* get versus what they *actually* get

[7:00] School performance, inactivity, and more: 4 consequences associated with too much screen time and too many screens

[18:00] 5 Practical television reduction tips for newbies

[22:00] Cre...

Defend The Eco-Trend: Algae

Algae is having moments in many spotlights. First, innovators are using microalgae – not petrochemicals – to create disposable packaging. Elsewhere, macroalgae is fed to cows to reduce their methane emittance. And pesky algae blooms? There’s actually a company that first captures then transforms algae blooms into our favorite sneaker’s cushiony foam.

Still, algae’s biggest potential comes within the field of human nutrition. Is microalgae an alternative to fish for omega 3s and, if so, can this ...

Valuable Minimalist Lessons

A Top 10 list of minimalism’s best and biggest life lessons. Here’s a preview of a few we’re covering:

[4:00] Memories don’t reside in trinkets.

[10:00] Save so you can spend … on what matters.

[21:30] Extras keep us cluttered.

[23:30] You can’t recoup “worth”.

[29:00] Space is more valuable than stuff (and peace of mind is most valuable of all).

[31:00] It’s not a deal if you don’t need it.

 

Resources mentioned:

Episode #096: Why Self-Sufficiency MattersSustainable Minimalism (the book)Join...